Microsoft Announces Application Specification for Windows 2000

June 15, 1999
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REDMOND, Wash., June 15, 1999 — Microsoft Corp. today announced the release of the Application Specification for Microsoft® Windows® 2000, the definitive technical guide to developing the most reliable and manageable applications for the Windows platform. Created by Microsoft in cooperation with key business customers and third-party developers, the specification provides clear, concise guidelines to help developers create applications that dramatically reduce the cost of business computing. The specification is available now at http://msdn.microsoft.com/winlogo/ .

“Business customers today are demanding greater reliability from their applications and operating system,”
said Brian Valentine, vice president of the Business and Enterprise Division at Microsoft.
“For the past two years, Microsoft has been working with corporate customers and industry-leading software vendors to develop this specification to meet these customer needs. Windows 2000, combined with applications that follow this specification, will provide a quantum leap forward in reliability and manageability.”

Some of the customers that reviewed and provided feedback in the drafting of this specification include Carnegie Mellon University, Charles Schwab & Co. Inc., Credit Suisse First Boston, CIGNA Corp., Ford Motor Co., Nortel Networks Corp., Pfizer Inc., University of Texas at Austin and Warburg Dillon Read.

“Software standards have been an integral part of the evolution of the computing environment at Carnegie Mellon,”
said Alex Hills, vice provost for Computing Services, Carnegie Mellon University.
“Applications that adhere to software standards, such as the Application Specification for Windows 2000, are an indispensable component to lowering our maintenance costs and providing a stable, leading-edge computing environment. We have been providing input into the creation of the specification, and we believe applications that adhere to this will be much easier to manage. We plan to incorporate compliance with this specification into our purchase criteria for new applications.”

Customers will realize the greatest benefits when running these applications on the Windows 2000 Professional or Windows 2000 Server operating system; however, many of these benefits will also apply to customers running previous versions of Windows.

“We see the Application Specification for Windows 2000 as a key tool in our migration to the Windows 2000 platform at Nortel Networks. Applications that meet this specification increase manageability and reduce our costs for applications that run on Windows 2000 as well as on Windows 9x platforms,”
said Otfried Riml, senior manager, Desktop Computing Technology at Nortel Networks.
“Nortel Networks Information Services will look for applications from software vendors that adhere to this specification, as well as make it a part of our internal application development guidelines for Windows 2000.”

The Application Specification for Windows 2000 is available in two versions: a core specification for desktop applications and a comprehensive specification for distributed applications across Windows 2000 Professional and Windows 2000 Server. Developers can have their applications tested for compliance with either specification as part of the upcoming Windows 2000 logo program. Testing will be performed by an independent testing agency starting later this summer. To help developers meet this specification, Microsoft is providing extensive technical resources, including developer support, sample code and training through the previously announced Windows 2000 Readiness Program for Applications and Developers. ISVs can find more information on this program at http://msdn.microsoft.com/msdnisv/win2000/ .

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